Jakov Prodanović (

Serbian Cyrillic The Serbian Cyrillic alphabet (, ), also known as the Serbian script, (, ), is a standardized variation of the Cyrillic script used to write the Serbian language. It originated in medieval Serbia and was significantly reformed in the 19th cen ...

: Јаков Продановић; 23 April 1867 – 1 June 1948) was a Serbian politician and writer. He was one of the most prominent proponents of the ideas of republicanism and social justice in the Kingdom of Serbia and in the Yugoslav monarchy of the Karađorđević dynasty. After the destruction of the Yugoslav monarchy by

Axis An axis (: axes) may refer to: Mathematics *A specific line (often a directed line) that plays an important role in some contexts. In particular: ** Coordinate axis of a coordinate system *** ''x''-axis, ''y''-axis, ''z''-axis, common names ...

forces in 1941, and the liberation of the country by

Yugoslav Partisans The Yugoslav Partisans,Serbo-Croatian, Macedonian language, Macedonian, and Slovene language, Slovene: , officially the National Liberation Army and Partisan Detachments of Yugoslavia sh-Latn-Cyrl, Narodnooslobodilačka vojska i partizanski odr ...

in 1945, he became a minister in

Democratic Federal Yugoslavia Democratic Federal Yugoslavia, also known as Democratic Federative Yugoslavia (DF Yugoslavia or DFY), was a provisional state established during World War II on 29 November 1943 through the Second Session of the Anti-Fascist Council for the Natio ...

and later the deputy prime minister of the newly established

Federal People's Republic of Yugoslavia The Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (commonly abbreviated as SFRY or SFR Yugoslavia), known from 1945 to 1963 as the Federal People's Republic of Yugoslavia, commonly referred to as Socialist Yugoslavia or simply Yugoslavia, was a country ...

. He held this post until his death in 1948.

Early life and education

Jaša Prodanović attended high schools in Čačak and Belgrade. He subsequently studied at the School of Mathematics and Natural Sciences at ''

grandes écoles Grandes may refer to: *Agustín Muñoz Grandes, Spanish general and politician * Banksia ser. Grandes, a series of plant species native to Australia * Grandes y San Martín, a municipality located in the province of Ávila, Castile and León, Spain ...

'' in Belgrade until 1890. While a student, he established ties with foreign Socialist youth movements. He was one of the editors of the collected writings of

Svetozar Marković Svetozar Marković ( sr-Cyrl, Светозар Марковић, ; 9 September 1846 – 26 February 1875) was a Serbian political activist, literary critic and socialist philosopher. He developed an activistic anthropological philosophy ...

, his idol. He also edited the youth periodicals ''Srpska Misao'' and ''Narodna Misao''.

Career

In 1890, Prodanović became a high school teacher and took up journalism and literary criticism. In 1901 he joined the

Independent Radical Party The Yugoslav Democratic Party, ''State Party of Serbian, Croatian and Slovene Democrats'' and Democratic Party, also known as the Democratic Union was the name of a series of liberal political parties that existed in succession in the State of S ...

, a faction of the Radical Party. From 1902 to 1912 he edited the party's periodical, ''Odjek'' on an irregular basis. In 1903 he became a Member of Parliament. From 1909 to 1911 he served as minister of the economy in the government of

Stojan Novaković Stojan Novaković ( sr-Cyrl, Стојан Новаковић; 13 November 1842 – 18 February 1915) was a Serbian politician, historian, diplomat, writer, bibliographer, literary critic, literary historian, and translator. He held the post o ...

and was instrumental in the adoption of a 1911 law on workers' insurance. In the 1920s he sharply criticized the way the parliamentary system functioned. He openly opposed the authoritarian style of King

Alexander Alexander () is a male name of Greek origin. The most prominent bearer of the name is Alexander the Great, the king of the Ancient Greek kingdom of Macedonia who created one of the largest empires in ancient history. Variants listed here ar ...

and criticized the constitution promulgated by the king on 3 September 1931. When World War II ended, he attended the Potsdam Conference as Minister for Serbia in the Provisional Government of Yugoslavia before he joined the communists to become the first deputy prime minister of the

Works

He is best remembered as a writer. Prodanović edited anthologies of works by Jovan Ilić (1929), Svetislav Vulović (1932) and

Jovan Jovanović Zmaj Jovan Jovanović Zmaj ( sr-Cyrl, Јован Јовановић Змаj, pronounced ; 24 November 1833 – 1 June 1904) was a Serbian poet, translator and physician. Jovanović worked as a physician; he wrote in many poetry genres, including Lo ...

(1933-1937) as well as the collection ''Antologija narodne poezije'' (Anthology of National Poetry). His selected works include: * ''Ustavni razvitak i ustavne borbe u Srbiji'' (Constitutional developments and the struggle for a constitution in Serbia, 1936); * ''Istorija politickih stranaka i struja u Serbiji'' (The history of political parties and influences in Serbia, 1947).

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Prodanovic, Jasa 1867 births 1948 deaths Politicians from Čačak Writers from Čačak Politicians from Belgrade People from the Kingdom of Serbia Members of the National Assembly (Serbia) Deputy prime ministers of Yugoslavia Deputy prime ministers of Serbia Education ministers of Serbia Burials at Belgrade New Cemetery